Stephen Lucas, a former deputy health minister, was awarded the Order of Canada on July 1 for his leadership during the pandemic, despite prior rebuke for distributing expired vaccines. Lucas is now retired in North Vancouver, according to Blacklock’s.

"Stephen Lucas is a retired public servant and accomplished government leader," said the Rideau Hall citation. "His contributions have had a lasting impact on Canadians."

In 2021, Deputy Health Minister Lucas admitted his department relabeled expired AstraZeneca vaccines for public distribution, a practice criticized by the WHO. 

He testified that AstraZeneca extended the May 31 expiry by a month. "AstraZeneca in providing data, [did] extend that expiry a month," Lucas told MPs at the Commons health committee.

"It was a little misleading," Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner spoke on the alterations of the expiry date. Lucas did not respond at the time.

Lucas, Dr. Theresa Tam, and Dr. Bonnie Henry, all pandemic managers, received Orders of Canada.

From December 2020 to May 2022, Canada paid for approximately 169 million COVID vaccines, with nearly 125 million doses delivered and most administered. 

As of May 2022, the Auditor General (OAG) estimated 32.5 million doses in inventory were valued at $1 billion, based on public cost-per-dose data.

Even with the distribution of date-expired vaccines, the Government of Canada wasted $1.2 billion on COVID shots that were never used, according to Public Accounts tabled last December 17. It was the highest figure divulged to date.

The OAG report estimated that taxpayers spent $5 billion ($30/dose) on undisclosed vaccine contracts.

The Public Health Agency (PHAC) struggled to track vaccine surplus and wastage post-delivery due to a lack of data-sharing agreements, hindering its ability to predict supply needs and plan for donations.

The OAG recommended that PHAC adjust surplus vaccine management to minimize waste. The agency agreed, vowing to inform future pandemic planning.

On February 6, 2023, Auditor General Karen Hogan described the challenges of managing vaccine supply with provinces and territories at a parliamentary hearing.

"That's one issue we were trying to raise. It's that the federal government actually loses some visibility in what happens to the doses once they've been delivered to the provinces and territories," Hogan told MPs at the time.

VaccineConnect tracked vaccine use, administration, and expiration. However, data-sharing agreements prevent provinces and territories from informing the federal government about data location, ownership, and sharing methods.

Lucas briefed MPs on the pan-Canadian health data strategy, developed collaboratively during the pandemic, aiming to enhance data collection between levels of government.

PETITION: No More Shots!

55,994 signatures

Goal: 75,000 signatures

I demand Canada’s Minister of Health, Marjorie Michel, remove the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines from the market. Health Canada has confirmed the presence of an undisclosed plasmid, raising serious safety concerns and invalidating informed consent. I also support the Government of Alberta’s call to halt the vaccines, especially for healthy populations, including young adults and children.

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